First-year forward Rasmus Svartström scored his team-leading ninth goal of the season on the power play, but the St. Lawrence University men's hockey team fell 4-1 to Brown on Saturday evening at the Meehan Auditorium in Providence, R.I.

St. Lawrence fell to 2-18-2 with the loss, and 1-9-0 in league play, while the Bears improved to 4-13-0 and 3-7-0 in the ECAC.

Brown jumped on the board early and raced out to a 2-0 lead in the first nine minutes of the contest. Ben Poitras found space on two separate occasions and made the Saints pay with two tallies.

Around the midway mark of the first, the Scarlet and Brown got a great opportunity to chip away at the deficit with a power play chance.

On the man-advantage, Cayden Casey and Tyler Cristall were running the point and Casey skipped a pass to his senior teammate in space. Cristall toe-dragged and fired a puck on goal that was redirected by Svartström past Tyler Shea to make it a 2-1 game.

The newcomer surpassed Cristall with his team-high ninth goal of the season. He is also tied with Casey with 13 points on the season.

St. Lawrence created some quality chances, but the game went into the break at 2-1.

The Scarlet and Brown dominated play in the second period, not allowing a shot in the first 9:344 of the period, meanwhile they generated 15 shot attempts. During the barrage, the Saints also had a power play chance, but Shea and the Bears' penalty kill unit stood tall.

Momentum shifted after the kill, and Brown got a goal from Ivan Zadvernyuk, who made it a two-goal game again for his squad. In the final three minutes of the period, Matthew Cataldo then made it a 4-1 game with an even-strength goal.

The third period was a slow-progressing one with lots of stoppages, and the play was even on both ends. The best chances early came on a 4-on-4 situation when a Nicholas Beneteau shot led to a scrum that saw him, Sam Hall, and Gunnar Thoreson all get close chances, but were once again turned away.

The game stayed at 4-1 into the final five minutes, where the Saints pulled Colin Winn for an extra attacker, and went on a 6-on-4 due to a Bears' penalty. St. Lawrence generated eight shot attempts but couldn't close the gap.

Winn made 28 saves for the Saints, while Shea stood on his head with 39 saves, including 17 in the third period.

St. Lawrence led 40-32 in shots and won the special teams battle, going 1-for-3 on the power play compared to Brown's 0-for-2.

The Skating Saints will be back on the road next Friday when the team heads to Cambridge, Mass., to take on Harvard.